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Ever wonder how those grocery shelves at your Publix get filled with all the wonderful and lovely produce you and your family enjoy? Think it is the result of well paid craftsman farmers, hearty individualists sowing and tilling and harvesting with sweat on their powerful brows? Think again. In the service of increasing profit, capitalism requires the constant reduction of cost and this competitive dynamic eventually forces the use of cheap labor. And what’s cheaper than a child? In the value system of competitive capitalism, not much.

So what determines human intelligence? Is it nature (i.e. genetics), nurture (i.e. socialization and education), or some combination of the two. This is not an easy question to answer but we all have our opinions. This survey aims to take a snapshot of our basic collective thinking on the determination of human intelligence. Take the survey and join the discussion! It takes only two minutes.

Here is an awesome article that questions the western view of Arab women, the Western view of women, the Westernized view of the family, the Western fetish with the Hijab, and even Western understandings of the politics of colonialism and occupation. A veritable sociological tour de force, but not from a traditional sociological source. A fascinating alternative to views common in the mainstream, and accepted without thought, by most.

BOOK REVIEW: Science, Evolution, and Creationism 2008. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. [amazonify]0309105862[/amazonify]In an effort to extol the virtues of evolution, the National Academy of Sciences has published an updated version of Science, Evolution, and Creationism (2008). In this brief, but colorful …

Classroom controversies are short and provocative articles designed to encourage classroom debate. They revolve around current, often hot button issues, and are likely to generate considerable classroom dialogue. Please feel free to print as many copies of these articles as you need. To submit a paper or proposal, visit our contact page.

Socialism for the rich, capitalism for the poor. As Timothy McGettigan points out, the ideal of free market capitalism being good for the economy, and good for the world, is largely a myth. Nowhere is this clearer than in the case of health care. When compared against, for example, Canada’s health care system, the US private system is more expensive and less effective. And despite the rhetoric, the US GOVERNMENT spends almost twice as much per capital on its “private” health care. In fact, the US spends more per capital on healthcare than any other developed nation despite its efficiency rhetoric! So why does a privately funded medical system cost more for the US taxpayer than a publically funded Canadian system? Inquiring minds want to know.

In the aftermath of the 2008 financial meltdown, Ben Bernanke, America’s leading scholar of the Great Depression, has been credited with saving the nation’s economy. As a reward for his sterling work, on August 25, 2009, President Obama appointed Ben …

This article originally appeared in Volume Three of The Electronic Journal of Sociology. It is reproduced here as part of the debate on the challenges of higher education.

Higher education faces challenges. From the competitive ethic of commercialism to the increasing demands for accessible and flexible education, colleges and universities face pressure to change. But is the solution to our educational woes to be found in even stronger alignment of business models with educational models?

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